Doctor of Ministry Program

Are you ready to go to the next level? How about the church or organization you lead? Is it all it should be? We want to help you achieve your potential and refresh your soul. That is why we focus on the total person, in addition to challenging you academically, and exposing you to best practices.

Program Snapshot:

Duration: 3-6 years that includes:

15 units of seminar work

8 units of field work

6 units of ministry project

29 total units

Location: 5 Campuses throughout the Western United States. (only 30 days required
in classroom throughout program.)

Approach: Study in cohorts that range in size from 8 to 15.

Ministry Path:

Pastor

Chaplain

Denominational Worker

Church Planter

Missionary

Golden Gate's DMin program is:

Calibrated to the speed of life. You can earn your DMin with three trips of about ten-day duration, each to one of our five strategically located campuses. During these trips you will take our three program seminars, Orientation, Research Methods, Project Planning, and our three core seminars Leadership, Spiritual Formation, and Ministry of Personal Relationships to enhance your leadership skills, relationship with God, and ability to relate with others.

Self-Directed. With your other two courses you will customize the degree to your interest of specialization. Sometimes we have a cohort or a learning community within a cohort that works on the area of specialization together. Another option is to choose from courses like Proclamation and Worship or Context, Culture and Missions. We also offer other courses like The Ministry of Writing or The Ministry of Teaching for those who want to expand their ministry onto the written page or into the classroom. So whether it is Church Planting or Church Revitalization, we likely have a course that will meet your interest. If what we offer doesn’t fit your needs, we will work with you to arrange your own learning experience with a candidate-arranged specialist seminar.

Life on Life. Ministry can be lonely, but it doesn’t have to be that way. Our cohort system (8-15 candidates) encourages you to build meaningful relationships with other ministers who face the same challenges you do.

We will help you set up a ministry support system so you can gain needed feedback from your peers, those you serve, and from a mentor. We don’t just give you a mentor’s phone number to call when you need advice. You will meet for an average of an hour a week for 18 months with a trained ministry mentor to give you help and support. One of our directors will meet with you and your mentor several times throughout your program to assist you in your growth goals.

Challenging. With Golden Gate’s DMin, you will experience academic excellence with practical application. While it is not a research degree like the PhD, it is a challenging professional degree that applies academic rigor to life and ministry. It is as appropriate for those who want to engage in the practice of ministry as the MD is to those who want to practice medicine.

Ministry is tough. You minister in an ever-changing, often hostile environment. Our DMin faculty understands the pressures. They are accomplished, front-line ministers who teach out of their theological training and their extensive ministry experience. They want to help you accelerate your ministry and refresh your soul.

Requirements for Admission

MDiv or equivalent (72 masters-level credit-hours with specific course distribution) with a 3.0 or higher GPA. Those with a lower GPA may still qualify with an adequate Miller's Analogy test score.

Three years of post MDiv, substantial ministry experience. We can waive this for a limited number of applicants that evidence capacity to do advanced theological reflection.